Sudan's new presidency yesterday lifted the state of emergency in Sudan, except in the conflict-torn regions of Darfur and the east, a statement from the presidential palace said. One day after former southern rebel leader John Garang was sworn in as first vice president to head a new government as President Omar Hassan Bashir's deputy, emergency law giving authorities wide powers to detain without charge and to crack down on opposition forces was cancelled. The statement said Bashir had lifted the state of emergency, in force in Sudan since 1999, except in five states. They are the three states of Darfur and two states bordering Eritrea in the east, where a low intensity conflict escalated in recent months.